Marcel Tabuteau : how do you expect to play the oboe if you can't peel a mushroom?

Laila Storch is a world-renowned oboist in her own right, but her book honors Marcel Tabuteau, one of the greatest figures in twentieth-century music. Tabuteau studied the oboe from an early age at the Paris Conservatoire and was brought to the United States in 1905, by Walter Damrosch, to play with the New York Symphony Orchestra. Although this posed a problem for the national musicians' union, he was ultimately allowed to stay, and the rest, as they say, is history. Eventually moving to Philadelphia, Tabuteau played in the Philadelphia Orchestra and taught at the Curtis Institute of Music, ultimately revamping the oboe world with his performance, pedagogical, and reed-making techniques.In 1941, Storch auditioned for Tabuteau at the Curtis Institute, but was rejected because of her gender. After much persistence and several cross-country bus trips, she was eventually accepted and began a life of study with Tabuteau. Blending archival research with personal anecdotes, and including access to rare recordings of Tabuteau and Waldemar Wolsing, Storch tells a remarkable story in an engaging style.

• Preface p. ix
• Acknowledgments p. xiii
• Introduction p. xvii
• 1 Compiegne and the Tabuteau Family p. 1
• 2 Paris Conservatoire: Tabuteau's Studies with Georges Gillet, 1902-1904 p. 21
• 3 Arrival in America: Walter Damrosch and the New York Symphony Orchestra, 1905-1908 p. 39
• 4 The Metropolitan Opera: Singers and Conductors of the "Golden Age," 1908-1914 p. 59
• 5 San Francisco Interlude: The Panama-Pacific International Exposition Orchestra, 1915 p. 75
• 6 The Philadelphia Orchestra: The Stokowski Years, 1915-1940 p. 88
• 7 Tabuteau as Soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra: 1915-1954 p. 136
• 8 Tabuteau at the Curtis Institute of Music: 1924-1946 p. 177
• 9 Lessons with Tabuteau: My Arrival in Philadelphia, January 1943 p. 217
• 10 My First Year with Tabuteau at the Curtis Institute: October 1943-May 1944 p. 254
• 11 Tabuteau Conducts the Curtis Orchestra: Fall 1944-Spring 1945 p. 306
• 12 Tabuteau's Summers in Canada: Salmon Fishing in Nova Scotia p. 345
• 13 Another Year of Study with Tabuteau: 1945-1946 p. 355
• 14 Summers in France: The Pingouinette; Back to Philadelphia, 1948 p. 369
• 15 Tabuteau's Last Years at the Curtis Institute: 1946-1954 p. 393
• 16 The Casals Festivals in Prades and Perpignan: 1950, 1951, and 1953 p. 416
• 17 Tabuteau as Seen by His Philadelphia Orchestra Colleagues p. 438
• 18 Retirement in France: La Coustiero, 1954-1959 p. 455
• 19 Tabuteau's Final Years in Nice: 1959-1966 p. 474
• 20 Philadelphia Postlude: Tabuteau's Playing; His Musical Ideas and Influence p. 507
• Appendix 1 Introduction and Text Transcription for the Tabuteau-Wolsing CD p. 521
• Appendix 2 The Students of Marcel Tabuteau at the Curtis Institute of Music p. 531
• Appendix 3 The Tabuteau System: Essay and Outline by Marc Mostovoy p. 533
• Glossary of Terms Used by Oboists p. 545
• Notes p. 547
• Selected Bibliography p. 577
• Index p. 579